Steelers Defense Must "Execute" Against Eagles

"If everybody does their jobs correctly stays in their gaps, we get all 11 hats to the ball, then it should be a good game for us." - Ziggy Hood

Those words Ziggy uttered weren't about Michael Vick and the Philadelphia Eagles specifically, nonetheless they fit this Sunday's game ever so adequately. With the mercurial Vick and the shifty LeSean McCoy coming to town it truly is all (11 men's) hands on deck.

We talk gap control a lot on If It Ain't Steel and it applies this Sunday especially. Lack of technique and gap control are essential whenever a defense steps onto the field, but even more so with a "shady" running back and a dual threat quarterback like Vick.

The defense as a whole knows this all too well: the last time a quarterback ran for 50 or more yards on the Steelers was back in 2002. The quarterback then? Michael Vick. The Steelers Mike Tomlin, in praising the Eagles in his weekly press conference on Tuesday, talked about whether they will use a spy on Vick. - http://www.steelers.com/video-and-audio/videos/Mike_Tomlin_Press_Conference_102/10cd163f-a07b-4544-8048-077e6aaa361f

So they will absolutely look to keep Vick in pocket. "We have to play straight up football. He can easily get away from a sack or two," said Steelers cornerback Ike Taylor said. "He's known for using his legs but we all know how strong his arm is. It's a double threat with Vick."

Nose tackle Steve McLendon agrees. He told Steelers beat writer Ed Bouchette that Vick isn't like the old Vick.

"That's the thing, he's trying to be the quarterback he's not, and I hope he keeps being that quarterback," McLendon said. "We want him to sit in the pocket. As long as he's sitting in the pocket, we have a good chance to get to him and hit him. If we can hit him, get him frustrated a couple of times, we're going to be successful."

Speaking of Steve McLendon, why isn't Lebeau playing him more? He sacked Vick with one hand in the preseason, in fact he was starting to look as if he would supplant Casey Hampton as starter. At the very least he looked as if he would prove true Steelers defensive line coach John Mitchell. He told reporters at the NFL Draft to 'hold their opinion' of McLendon, intimating that they shouldn't assume that fourth round draft pick Alameda Ta'amu would be Little Snack. - http://www.steelers.com/video-and-audio/videos/Press-Conference---4th-Round---John-Mitchell/dc844660-5de3-4e54-a6c1-2dffad6f1922

Steelers strong safety Troy Polamalu also realizes that "any time you can get any pressure on anybody, which is always our goal, I think you have more success." It won't be easy, but having Polamalu back on the field would help.

Polamalu and James Harrison both practiced Monday and Wednesday, which is good sign for the Steelers defense. Like Ike Taylor said, "You're talking about two defensive league MVPs. Enough said." Let's see if they are back out there Thursday before getting too excited, though. Once is an accident, twice is a coincidence and three times is a trend.

Of the possible return of Harrison and Polamalu, safety Ryan Clark also said: "It gives you two players you have to scheme for offensively, two players coach (Dick) Lebeau can use extensively."

But he also made a telling statement when he said, "I think it's more pressure, honestly....No more excuses."

If Polamalu does return to the lineup after missing two games due to a calf injury, it will be the first time this season the defense will have played with both starting safeties in the lineup. Ryan Clark having, of course, to sit out the season opener in Denver due to his Sickle Cell trait. Having both allows the defense more freedoms and will help bolster the run defense. - http://tinyurl.com/8t74bax

Speaking of which, LeSean McCoy is probably the best running back the Steelers will face this year and they need to contain him for a chance to win. Limiting the number of splash/explosive plays by him as well as their wide receivers, Desean Jackson and Jeremy Macklin, and tight end, Brent Celek, is imperative.

The defensive players know that it's mainly on them also. As we discussed in a recent article, the players must execute on defense. As we said, defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau didn't suddenly forget how to coach. If there is "predictable" aspect to the scheme's, fine, mix the scheme's up more and bring more (crossfire) blitz packages. The main impetus, still remains with the players themselves to do better.

Almost to a man the players ate admitting this as well. LaMarr Woodley admitted to it last week and Polamalu even says he's been asked about Steelers "predictable" defense since he came into the league. According to him, they're 'not predictable when they execute.'

Larry Foote was just as forthright when asked about the defensive struggles saying that they simply 'have to execute.' - http://tinyurl.com/9sddlyg

All 11 men must be on the same page in order to do that. We haven't seen it much this so far this season. That needs to change quickly to get the season back on track.

The Offensive Line Has To Do Better (or Thank you, @RamonFoster, for my 15 minutes of Twitter Fame)

Growing up as a Steelers fan I'd always wanted to meet or get the chance to talk to the players I was seeing on the t.v. screen. Players that I followed, emulated, even practically idolized. Living on the west coast for most of my life, though, I've had few opportunities. So those few opportunities that have been presented to me have been cherished.

I remember meeting former Outside Linebacker Mike Merriweather and got and autographed picture from him. I had the ultimate pleasure of meeting and speaking at length to one Robert Patrick Bleier...aka Rocky Bleier...aka Prune Juice. Not only did we have a conversation, and not only did he autograph a photo for me, but he dubbed me "Steeler Jason" as can be seen in the picture above. Thus the reason I go by "SteelerJsun" on certain social websites. Trust me, I could spend the rest of the time writing this blog about that night alone, but that isn't my purpose for this evening's keystrokes.

I've also recently had an exchange with a current Steelers player, though this one will be memorable for a different reason. After sunday's week 4 game against the Houston Texans, a game in which the offensive live gave up 5 sacks and allowed Ben Roethlisberger to be hit or hurried many more times on top of that, I posted on Twitter the following: "@ProBowler53 (Pouncey), @MGilbert76, Essex, @RamonFoster, and Juicy (Kemoeatu)= #Fail". Let's face it, they were seemingly never comfortable and even seemed as if they weren't even always on the same page. There were no holes for the running backs to run through in the first half at all and Big Ben was running for his life in the second half. So I didn't feel I was out of line at all in saying how I felt and would say it again regarding any position or positions if they merited such criticism. As I said, though, there was an exchange.

Some time later as I was attempting to get over the loss, I received a Twitter notification from offensive guard Ramon Foster saying "and ur a #FAILURE at LIFE." Now let me make one thing perfectly clear here: I'm a self-proclaimed "ass". I recognize it, I admit it, and I embrace it. So, trust me, Ramon Foster's reply to me only fueled my fire. I even replied once more to him asking, "Truth hurt?" There was no further reply from Foster. But it turns out that it didn't matter because I started seeing tweet after tweet (what Twitter calls it's posts) of Foster's reply and the comments being made by other Steelers fans regarding it. Most seemed to echo my sentiments as well.



All that having been said, the reason for my Twitter post wasn't to publically undress him or the rest of the offensive line, it was to state the facts of the line's play. To be blunt, they couldn't have have opened a hole for Mendenhall in the first half if it had the name Jenna Jameson attached to it. And while Big Ben may be strong and elusive, you still don't want him running like that-he's no Michael Vick. I've got a rock in my back yard that could beat Big Ben in the 40 yard dash. Plain and simple, the offensive line HAS TO DO BETTER. The lack of blocking is a major factor in the team barely being 2-2. The lack of a run blocking means the Steelers become one-dimensional quickly, and that means teams can pin their ears back and go after Big Ben. That could very easily spell the end of his season. He is already in a walking boot after all.

So to Ramon Foster and any other current player who may read this blog post, this isn't a 'could any of them have played on the better Steelers' OLines of the past' argument. It's simply a calling out of the players to get them to realize that we as fans are paying attention and are concerned. We love our team and will always cherish those opportunities to interact with them...even if they're just snapping at us.

IfItAintSteel's Top 12 NFL Quarterbacks

   I decided to do a Top Quarterback list of my own because, well, there seemed to be so many of them this offseason. I thought to myself, "Mr. Goodbar, why don't you do a list of your own? You're almost as smart as most of those guys, you could easily do this. You could get paid to watch film and evaluate. Hell, you do it now for free!" And I decided that I was right. So here it is, with my evaluation criteria being as follows:
‎1) Overall Ability
2) Leadership/Elevating Players
3) Wins
4) Mental Toughness/Comeback Ability
5) Accuracy
6) Pocket Presence
7) Toughness and Escapability.
I'm not considering SB wins very much at all and I'm only looking at the QBs as they are now and projecting what will be. I've taken out all bias in making this list because I believe objectivity would be key in doing this properly. So don't flip if something doesn't trip your trigger. Ready? Let the debates begin:
1-TOM BRADY: For those who haven't stopped reading and started to form voodoo dolls with which to torture me, I'm sorry, but the reasons are all there: wins, win percentage, playoff wins, completion percentage, low INT %, comebacks/game-winning drives and All-Pros. *sigh* Ok, now I need a shower...
2-AARON RODGERS: He just has it all: leadership, toughness, accuracy...the list goes on and on. There's nothing about him I don't like. Well, except for that whole, "the freakin jagoff beat us in the SB" thing. For that I hope he chokes on his SB ring. Other than that...
3-PEYTON MANNING: This one was actually tough because I believe this year we will start to see a decline in his surgeon-like execution. He has WR issues and OLine issues to face this year, not to mention his own neck issues, so we will see chinks in his armor. I have seen enough, though, over the years to believe he'll still be elite.
4-BEN ROETHLISBERGER: I almost put Ben at 3 considering what I said about Peyton's potential decline, especially since I believe Ben's going to be even better this year. He only had 5 INTs last year which projects to 7 over 16 games-the best INT percentage in his career. He's focusing on being a better teammate and QB, and, especially now that he has a wifey, being a better person. I happen to know a little something about wanting to be a better person because of the love of a beautiful woman, but I digress... Ben's toughness and comeback ability are unparalleled. He has the top 4th quarter comeback percentage of the top QBs on this list/in the NFL & 2nd highest percentage of game-winning drives, as well as some of the best all-time comeback numbers based on his number of starts. If he continues on this path he'll be top three in no time.
5-DREW BREES: I actually take offense with people who claim he's better than Big Ben. Brees is damn good, yes, but he just barely reaches top 5 considering he actually has a low winning percentage and relatively low QB rating. He is a tough competitor, though, who has a never-say-die attitude despite his small stature (small for an NFL QB, that is).
6-PHILIP RIVERS: At the risk of my girfriend, Jayden, breaking up with me, I had to give this numbnut his due- the boy is GOOD. He has all the tools to be in the top three, he just forgets how to use them in the playoffs. Until he learns how to use them at the most critical moments, he won't break the top five.
7-MICHAEL VICK: I'll be doggone if Vick didn't come back as a better QB. He showed dogged determination to get back onto a roster. Tomlin actually wanted him in the Burgh, but the Rooneys put a collar on that. Besides, Vick wanted to be top dog and that wasn't happening with the Steelers. Regardless, he wasn't about to play dead, he was always gonna prove he belonged. I guess every dog really does have his day.
8-MATT RYAN: This is easy-Ryan is just the real deal. Easiest way to put it out there is this: in just 3 years & 46 games, he has 13 game-winning drives-the highest percentage of the top 10 QBs. He also is credited with eight 4th quarter comebacks and has a very low INT percentage. Simply put: Matty Ice.
9-JOSH FREEMAN: Big, strong, durable, good leader, toughness... Sound familiar? I. Like. Josh. Freeman. He almost had Tampa in the playoffs last year after leading them to a 7 game turnaround, while only throwing SIX interceptions all season. I'm gonna bring in Barney Stinson to explain Freeman's future. Barney? "He's going to be legend...wait for it...ary! Now football suit up!" Thanks, Barney. 'Preciate it.
10-JOE FLACCO/ELI MANNING: I consider them a tie because Flaccid has the tools to be good, but he fizzles when it counts like Phyllis Diller, er uh, Philip Rivers does. Manning has the misfortune of being compared to his brother. Eli is a different QB from his brother in that he's much more gritty. He can mix it up and come out on top...ask the Cheatriots. Can he do it again, though? I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.
11-MARK SANCHEZ: He could be a force to be reckoned with now that he has the Steelers' WRs.
12-TONY ROMO: He actually a pretty good... Oh, wait...sorry the pen fell outta my hand. Wow...that was slippery...

There you have it: my Top 12 Quarterback list to start off the 2011 NFL season. Let the debate begin.